The UK’s relentless slide into self-destruction

Reflections on the recent UK riots

The heartbreaking, under-reported scenario of gender detransition

What are the spiritual dynamics behind all the Brexit fury?

So could the Gospel, if only it was broadcast more widely

In the midst of a grave political crisis, it was a welcome respite to have the nation’s spirits so gloriously lifted by our somewhat miraculous triumph in cricket’s World Cup.

Although initially favourites to break our longstanding duck¹ in the competition, we ended up having to snatch victory from the jaws of defeat at Lord’s. And before the heady champagne effect wears off, I believe we must grasp the vital spiritual lesson it teaches us.

The game that has become part of England’s DNA was beginning to lose its drawing power, thanks partly to greedy media moguls determined to milk as much money as possible from TV rights while denying a new generation access to the delights of the sport.

Even for me, Sunday’s sensational final was the first live television cricket I have watched for many years, as I do not subscribe to Sky. Now there are hopes of the game’s revival following what is surely the most scintillating thriller of a match ever staged in front of cameras. Yet its long-term future is only guaranteed, in my opinion, by its return to regular terrestrial TV.

At any rate, my hope is that this remarkable contest will help reinstate the game’s place at the centre of our culture – along with other important facets of our national life such as our identity as a Christian nation.

Revival Ahead?

I have written before of cricket’s link with the great 19^th Century missionary enterprise in China, when CT Studd, England’s greatest player in the early 1880s, gave up his fame and fortune for the Gospel. And there have been others, like Bishop David Sheppard, who also gave up bat for pulpit.

As much-loved broadcaster Henry Blofeld wrote in the Daily Mail² – “The dear old sport I love may be about to undergo a revival” – so my prayer is that this will be mirrored by a revival of Christian faith.

Cricket may be about to undergo a revival – so my prayer is that this will be mirrored by a revival of Christian faith.

A glimpse of such a prospect emerged during a recent stay in a Cotswold village, where I simply drooled over the perfectly-manicured serenity of its cricket pitch, but also took a walk across the fields before stumbling upon a tiny church which two lovely ladies were decorating with flowers. They waxed lyrical over the evangelical fervour of their vicar who was filling these country chapels with eager new disciples.

As Blofield noted in his report, “people who never watched the game before are now hooked.” I can certainly vouch for that as my wife Linda, who would normally roll her eyes at the mention of cricket, was as excited as I was. We were literally sitting on the edge of our sofa as the game built up to an almost unbearably tense crescendo. What a showpiece for the sport!

Denied Access

Well, the Christian Gospel is equally as thrilling – if not more so. It’s just that most of the estimated billion viewers of the cricket spectacle have not yet been truly exposed to it, having neither seen nor heard the true nature of the length and breadth, and of the height and depth, to which God has gone to rescue us from the shame and defeat of sin and degradation: how Jesus was nailed to a cruel execution stake so we could go free; how he was miraculously raised from the dead and is coming back in power and great glory to restore peace and justice to our broken world.

And just as many have been denied access to the glories of cricket over the past decade, a huge potential audience has been denied access to the real Gospel because the ‘movers and shakers’ of our brave new world have chosen to ‘take it off the air’, leaving those desperate for real answers to their many troubles having to feed off the hopeless message of secular humanism.

Jesus told us to make disciples of all nations and Paul, specifically with his fellow Jews in mind, asked: “How can they believe in the one of whom they have not heard?” (Matt 28:19; Rom 10:14).

Lasting Satisfaction

When all the cheering is over and the excitement has died down, many cricket fans will still be left feeling empty and unfulfilled, searching for another ‘fix’ that will inevitably fail to offer lasting satisfaction.

But the Gospel does. The Apostle Paul, in quoting the Prophet Isaiah writing 700 years earlier, declares: “No eye has seen, no ear has heard, no mind has conceived what God has prepared for those who love him” (1 Cor 2:9; Isa 64:4).

Few get more excited about a good cricket match than I do. But believe me, there is nothing to compare with what God has prepared for those who love and follow him.

The Christian Gospel is equally as thrilling – if not more so. But most people have not yet been truly exposed to it.

Zero to Hero

It was ironic indeed that it was New Zealand-born Ben Stokes who played a key role in England’s historic victory over his Kiwi compatriots – and also that England’s triumph was in fact led by its Irish-born captain Eoin Morgan. The Irish border may be something of a sticking point in our Brexit negotiations, but this monumental achievement owes much to our Irish connections.

As for Stokes, he’s had a troubled past, most notably with his involvement in an ugly punch-up a few years back, but with exemplary determination and courage he has been lifted from zero to hero.

In a similar way, our beloved country that helped spread the glorious Gospel throughout the globe has fallen into disgrace after turning its back on the very commandments which built up our great civilisation. Only that same Gospel can restore us!

References

1 A duck is a cricketing term for failing to score – in this case for failing to win.

2 Daily Mail, 15 July 2019.

The 'Mother of Parliaments' is in disarray - where is God?

Today, the eyes of the world are upon Britain, especially Westminster. Everywhere there is amazement that the British Parliament – the ‘Mother of Parliaments’ – is in disarray.

Why is this? In simple terms, it is because our Parliament, which is supposed to represent the people, is opposed to the people! The nation voted to leave the European Union and in Parliament, of 650 MPs, about 500 of them voted Remain.¹ Most of them will do everything possible to oppose the will of the people they represent, and keep Britain locked into the European Union. Clearly, it is the death of democracy when those elected to represent the people no longer do so.

There are, of course, many additional factors that go to make up the incredibly complicated situation in our House of Commons today. There are leadership ambitions on both sides of the House, and great dissatisfaction with their respective leaders. Among both Labour and Conservatives there is a desire to change the leader. Conservatives know that it would be disastrous to force Mrs May to stand down in the midst of a national crisis and Labour MPs know that Jeremy Corbyn has the backing of many of their new members and there is no outstanding leader to challenge him.

But our task at Prophecy Today UK is not simply to analyse the facts, but to see beyond them to the forces that are shaping our destiny, and to ask pertinent questions such as “What is God doing in the midst of all this chaos?” It is my belief that God is not simply sitting on the side-lines watching what is happening, but he is actually orchestrating the chaos in our Parliament.

Ever Seeing, Never Perceiving

Throughout the Bible we can see how God actively intervenes and creates a chaotic situation to which there appears no simple answer, in order to force people to recognise the utter folly of what they are doing. God actually uses disaster as a means of working out his purposes.

Just look at a few examples: God said to Moses “Go to Pharaoh for I have hardened his heart…” (Ex 10:1). God put a “lying spirit” in the mouths of the prophets (1 Kings 22:23). He put “hooks in the jaws” of Gog and Magog to make them carry out his will (Ezek 38:4). He told Isaiah that he was hardening the hearts of the people so that they would be “ever seeing, but never perceiving” (Isa 6:9).

Throughout the Bible we can see how God actively intervenes and creates a chaotic situation - he uses disaster as a means of working out his purposes.

Jesus said the same about the people of Jerusalem, “If you, even you had only known on this day what would bring you peace – but now it is hidden from your eyes” (Luke 19:42).

One of the signs of judgment coming upon the people is “madness, blindness and confusion of mind” (Deut 28:28). And when the level of corruption in a nation reaches crisis point, God removes his cover of protection, “Therefore God gave them over to the sinful desires of their hearts” (Rom 1:24). He sends a “powerful delusion so that they will believe the lie” (2 Thess 2:11).

A Lying Spirit

Today, we are not only seeing our Parliament but the media, the means of communication, being infected with a lying spirit. It is an age of fake news and deception. Even our national broadcaster, the BBC, that was founded upon biblical truth and the objective of transmitting it to the world, can no longer be trusted.

Radio 4, the bulwark of news broadcasting, has since the beginning of the year been pushing consistently for a second referendum, with the objective of reversing the decision to leave the European Union.

Powerful figures such as John Humphrys have undoubtedly added to the division in Britain that threatens every part of our national life – the economy, trade and industry, and law and order - because another referendum would create a level of national division not seen in Britain since the Civil War four centuries ago. This is especially so given the spirit of violence that is currently driving social media, contributing to knife crime, gang warfare, race hatred and terrorism.

Under Judgment

The plain fact is that as a nation we do not know what we are doing – we are blindly heading for disaster, led by our MPs, so many of who are driven by lying spirits, because we are a nation under judgment.

Today, we are not only seeing our Parliament but the media, the means of communication, being infected with a lying spirit.

Theresa May is under judgment in the same way as David Cameron was - and for the same reason. They both conspired to drive the Same-Sex Marriage Bill through Parliament against the wishes of more than 100 of their own MPs and against the wishes of the majority of the British people at that time. She was Home Secretary; he was Prime Minister.

Both of them claim to be Christians, therefore they know the word of God and they deliberately chose to defy biblical commands and lead the nation astray. David Cameron swiftly brought judgment upon himself that ended his career. Theresa May cannot succeed in anything to which she puts her hand (Deut 28:20) and she can only be the instrument of bringing further judgment upon the nation.

The 11^th Hour

It gives me no pleasure to write these things - but they are the plain, unvarnished truth. Is there any way of avoiding the deepening judgment that is coming upon the nation? Yes, of course there is! There is always, in the mercy of God, up to the 11^th hour, the offer of forgiveness and redemption - if there is repentance and turning.

We are now in the 11^th hour. But if the nation were prepared to put their trust in God and walk away from the secular humanist constrictions of the European Union without a deal, it would surely be pleasing in God’s sight. It would also lead to great opportunity for spiritual revival - for biblical truth to transform the nation through the prayers and the witness of the faithful remnant, who understand the times and are prepared to tell the nation the truth.

It may be that God is actually answering the prayers of the faithful remnant by increasing the chaos in our Parliament, so that Britain falls out of the EU by accident rather than by design. Despite voting against leaving without a deal, it is still possible that this is precisely what will happen on 29 March 2019. Is this God’s intention for Britain?

Please respond to our poll below:

References

1 Jacob Rees-Mogg’s estimate.

Don’t let the media steer your priorities this year.

As we enter another calendar year (albeit on the Roman rather than the biblical calendar), what will be the central focus of our attention as a society, and as individuals? A delayed vote on the Brexit ‘deal’? Concerns over immigration? Climate change? The fortunes of our favourite sporting team? The next TV cooking competition?

We can be sure that the news media will be full of their own top priorities, all shouting loudly to draw our attention. Three days after Christmas, I ran a search on the name ‘Jesus’ on the BBC website. Among a multitude of news items, sporting fixtures and scores, entertainment, travel and so on, apart from a small amount of archived material, Jesus was barely mentioned: a late-night Christmas Day programme, an early morning Sunday radio show, and an upcoming Daily Service on 14 January. Nowhere else.

Yet, unless Jesus is at the centre of all that we think and do, our focus will be out of balance and our priorities skewed more towards worldly affairs and opinions than we might realise. In this fast-paced, media-driven culture we must be careful to check our priorities, even as Christians - that would be a good new year resolution for all of us!

Check Your Sources!

Personally, I have become more concerned than ever about the way the media focusses our attentions and dictates our concerns. We can be beguiled into thinking that the latest BBC news headline is the key issue in the world. But the choices of news editors can blinker us away from what might be God's priorities.

When I was a child I was brought up in a working class family and worked with my father on building sites, where I am glad to have come into contact with many ‘ordinary’ folk. I was impressed by the depth of understanding that they seemed to have of political affairs, debated hotly in the tea and lunch breaks. It was only in later years that I smiled when I realised that most were only expressing the opinions that they read in their daily papers, such as the Daily Mirror. Many of these workmen had their choice of newspaper in their pocket as they went to work.

Unless Jesus is at the centre of all that we think and do, our focus will be out of balance and our priorities skewed more towards worldly affairs and opinions than we might realise.

In conversations I have had this Christmas break, I was struck again by the way opinions across all social classes are still formed by the media. It was standard media opinions and the arguments of charismatic media personalities that were used by my non-believing friends to defend evolution against creationism, or LGBTQ+ ‘rights’, or to debate questions of our membership of the EU, or President Trump, Theresa May and so on.

"Check your sources!" is my constant cry against arguments that are too often based on no solid foundations. Certainly the mainstream media is not usually a primary source of truth, even if it is a primary source for opinion.

Steering Public Opinion

I read Andrew Marr's book, My Trade, recently and this confirmed my view of much corruption in the news industry: always seeking a headline (whether true, part-true or contrived) in order to make sales. Fake news is a new term, but it is not a new issue. Fake news or biased news reporting has permeated news media from its inception.

Not all is bad and rotting of course, but overall, the general public is often faced with a variety of selected ‘news’ stories that they cannot check and which are cleverly contrived to steer their opinion in a certain direction.

What we witness in the public arena is a power struggle for who shall govern our nation. The media has a legitimate place to hold politicians to account, but it has become a manipulating power that often weakens government instead of strengthening it. This adds daily to the corruption which is all around us - a corruption that is deepening because Jesus – the Truth - is no longer the central focus in our nation.

Generation Gap

Young people are not always as beguiled as older generations by what they see in the news arena. They have grown up in a world where you can no longer believe what you see. I discovered this from other conversations that I had this holiday season. These conversations made me wonder whether I really understand our younger generation who, through their own interactive and online communities, seem to be separating themselves away from a failing world.

The mainstream media is not usually a primary source of truth, even if it is a primary source for opinion.

The up-side is that many young people are thinkers. The down-side is that they are vulnerable and susceptible due to our cultural drift away from the Gospel message (which many young people have never heard). The nation is ripe for a youth-led revolution: but whether an uprising or a revival - it could go either way.

Jesus at the Centre

My challenge for 2019, therefore, is for us who know him to bring Jesus fully into the centre of our lives once more: to see things as he sees them and not according to worldly agendas that make no reference to him.

The Bible speaks so often, though sometimes in mysteries to be understood through prayer, about the days in which we live - days like the days of Noah or of Sodom and Gomorrah - days leading up to the return of Jesus, on which we need to be focussed more and more.

Perhaps, if Christians were to strengthen their focus on our Lord, then he may be gracious enough to revive us once more and through us speak truth to this needful generation. The days are urgent.

Prescribing an antidote for a troubled world bombarded by bad news

I read this week, with the faintest molecule of sympathy, of a 28-year-old film star who can’t seem to enjoy a day without being bombarded by the world’s troubles. Poor thing! How she would love to be permanently cocooned from reality in her make-believe world.

But yes, we are constantly assaulted by so much bad news, fake news, propaganda and general noise that we scarcely feel able to think. Mind-boggling.

But here is some good news you may not have heard. Amidst the horror of the Indonesian tsunami, I heard of a pilot who, prompted by God, took off from the very epicentre of the disaster three minutes ahead of schedule – not knowing what was about to happen – thereby saving his 140 passengers from certain death.¹ What made the difference? His mind was in tune with the Holy Spirit.

Sadly, however, that is not the norm. Both children and adults are spending a great part of their waking hours allowing their minds to be filled with so much that is destructive and unedifying. Even Christians have fallen for this. No wonder they are being so ineffective in winning a lost generation for Christ. Is there a way out? Well, switching off and allowing the Creator to speak into their lives would be a start.

Mind Over Muscle

Also this week, I was travelling south by train sitting next to a young man reading a book called ‘Mind over Muscle’ - or something like that. I could see he was engrossed, so declined to interrupt and got out my Bible, reading through Paul’s letter to the Philippians, which speaks much of the importance of the mind – how we need to focus, concentrate and meditate on the word of God, the ultimate wisdom for living.

He writes about “being one in spirit and of one mind” and having “the same mindset” as Christ. He also talks of enemies of the Cross who have “their mind set on earthly things”. He pleads with those at odds with each other “to be of the same mind in the Lord” and adds that “the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus” (Phil 2:2, 2:5, 3:19, 4:2, 4:7).

Both children and adults are spending a great part of their waking hours allowing their minds to be filled with much that is destructive and unedifying – even Christians have fallen for this.

In his letter to the Roman believers, Paul urges them not to conform to the pattern of the politically-correct world of their day (when homosexuality even among the emperors was particularly prevalent), but to be transformed by the renewing of their minds (Rom 12:2).

The Prophet Isaiah says: “You will keep in perfect peace those who minds are steadfast, because they trust in you” (Isa 26:3).

In Training

My fellow traveller and I were both getting off at the same station, so when he closed his book I asked him if he was a runner. He sure was; in fact, he was an ‘Iron Man’ competing around the world in extraordinarily tough triathlons (taking in a two-mile swim, a marathon and a lengthy cycling course). I have also run many marathons, so there was much to share in the few minutes we had left.

But the point is that we were both reading up on the importance of the mind in our respective commitments. As a runner myself, I know the importance of the mind in determining whether you make it – simply to the finish or to a medal perhaps. You have to jettison the negative thoughts and soak up the positive as you run the race with both body and mind.

The author completes a 10K trail at Castle Howard in Yorkshire in 2010.

It always worked with me – except once, in the Scottish Marathon of 1972, and that disappointment helped to bring me into an encounter with the risen Lord Jesus Christ. Mind over muscle certainly works; I have proved that in my own experience.

But a mind that is filled with negative news, soap operas from which you need spiritual cleansing and endless Radio 1 music, will rob us of peace. God wants to speak into our lives with his words of wisdom, insight and guidance, but most of us are shutting him out and paying the price as we reap the chaotic, meaningless and immoral harvest into which we have sown.

In Hebraic thinking, the heart is the seat of the mind – in other words, we dedicate our souls and desires to what we have been focusing our minds upon. What we have ‘worshipped’ with our time – be it TV, social media or music – will evolve into a ‘golden calf’ (idol or false god) that can offer us neither hope, direction, purpose nor stability in life.

Many of us – even those who sit in church pews – have effectively been brainwashed in our political, ideological and sociological thinking by BBC news bulletins, television dramas and the like, rather than having our minds informed, washed and cleansed by the word of God.

In Hebraic thinking, the heart is the seat of the mind – in other words, we worship whatever we focus our minds upon.

Passion and Teamwork

Back to a sporting analogy. I have enjoyed watching the Ryder Cup – and golf is another pursuit very much played out in the mind. Although my older brother Rob hit the ball further than me when we played together as youngsters, I would usually beat him in the end because when it came to the tricky, delicate play around the greens, he was generally not up to it.

At the Ryder Cup in Paris last weekend, Europe’s 12 heroes won convincingly (against the odds) thanks to what I’ve dubbed the ‘Poulter Passion’ – demonstrated by the total commitment and focus of mind of players like Ian Poulter, along with their obvious teamwork.

Today’s Church could well do with 12 ‘apostles’ of this sort of calibre, striving together as one with a burning passion to win as many as possible for Christ.

Finally, I was struck by the testimony of a man once heavily involved in satanism who was released from terrible darkness by an encounter with Jesus. After a difficult period of disappointment later on, he experienced a breakthrough when, on the advice of his pastor, he began ‘renewing his mind’ by immersing himself in God’s word.²

References

1 A Miracle In Indonesia. Pilot Says He ‘Heard God’s Voice’ And Saved Hundreds. Joy! News, South Africa, 4 October 2018.

2 The story of Pastor Greg Hibbins, HEART News, October/November 2018. For more information, see www.heartpublications.co.uk

On Ari Fuld’s loss and Palestinian incitement to kill.

Last Sunday, 16 September, a 17-year old Palestinian high-school student stabbed to death a 45-year old father of four who was shopping for groceries at Gush Etzion, south of Bethlehem.

The father was Ari Fuld, an American Jew who had immigrated to Israel in 1994 and held dual nationality, living in the nearby settlement of Efrat.

In spite of his fatal wound, he prevented his assailant from then attacking the female shop assistant, saving her life by shooting and wounding the youth.

The young attacker, Khalil Jabarin, is from the village of Yatta, some five miles south of Hebron and is receiving treatment in Israel’s Hadassah hospital in Ein Kerem. His father had informed Palestinian authorities that he was missing following an argument about skipping school, whilst his mother had notified Israeli authorities of her fears that he was intent on making an attack somewhere.¹

The Fulds and the Jabarins. Just two of many devastated families in the ‘Land of Promise’.

Incitement with Money and Lies

Such attacks are encouraged by the long-term policy of the ‘cash-strapped’ Palestinian Authority of rewarding families of injured or killed perpetrators of violence (otherwise known as ‘martyrs’) with substantial sums. In this case, the Jabarin family is eligible for some £2,500.²

But the situation is also made far worse by incitement to violence from Palestinian leaders and media, wielding claims about Palestinian ‘heritage’ and Israeli ‘occupation’ that are blatant lies. Let’s consider this in more depth.

Such attacks are encouraged not only by the ‘pay-to-slay’ policy of the PA – but also by inciteful lies from Palestinian leaders and media.

‘Al-Aqsa Intifada’

Shortly after Sunday’s attack, Palestinian media claimed that it had been carried out in defence of Al-Aqsa. According to the news agency Donia al-Watan, Ari Fuld’s murder “is a response to warnings regarding the danger of what the occupation is currently doing, and what it intends to do at the Al-Aqsa Mosque.”³ What, you may ask, was the connection with Al-Aqsa?

To understand this, we need some background. The so-called ‘Al-Aqsa Intifada’ began in 2015. Between 1 October and 31 December of that year there were 88 stabbings, 32 shootings and 14 car-ramming attacks. Allegedly ‘spontaneous’, it was accompanied by vicious incitement. In early October a Palestinian Member of the Knesset, Haneen Zoabi, had written in the Hamas-affiliated newspaper al-Resalah,

Hundreds of thousands of worshippers should go up to al-Aqsa in order to face down an Israeli plot for the blood of East Jerusalem residents. Today there are actions only by individuals, and what is needed is popular support. If only individual attacks continue without popular support, they will sputter out within a few days. Therefore the outpouring of thousands of our people will make these events a real intifada.⁴

On 9 October, in a sermon at Friday prayers in Rafah (Gaza) which was streamed online, imam Sheikh Muhammad Sallah called on Palestinians in East Jerusalem and the West Bank to “attack in threes and fours…cut them into body parts…stab the myths about the Temple in their hearts!”⁵

Around the same time, a slew of posts appeared on social media praising attacks and providing advice for how to make them effective. One Gazan, using the hashtag #Stab, posted an anatomical chart on Facebook showing which parts of the body to aim for. Using the hashtag #SlaughteringtheJews, another user posted a message addressed to "our brethren in the West Bank and all of Palestine" who wish to kill "pigs" (an Islamic epithet for Jews) in the quickest possible manner, including graphic advice.⁶

The official PA daily al-Hayat al-Jadida has acknowledged that in the first year alone of that intifada “250 [Palestinian] civilians died as Shahids [martyrs], 161 of them while carrying out stabbing operations against the occupation's soldiers and its settlers” (my emphasis).⁷

The allegedly ‘spontaneous’ Al-Aqsa Intifada has been accompanied by vicious incitement since it began in 2015.

False Claims of Excavation

This year, although the casualty rate is much lower, the Islamic rhetoric has been ramping up again.

In July a member of the Islamic Waqf in Jerusalem said on the Palestinian Authority’s official TV channel, "The blessed Al-Aqsa Mosque has no foundations now...Al-Aqsa is now empty of the rocks and that which supports it, due to the Israeli machine that is excavating under it, as rats burrow under the ground only for evil and destruction."⁸

This is pure fabrication – the only excavators of the Temple Mount since 1967 have been Muslims! Yet, a few days later, this was broadcast on PA TV:

The Fatah Movement emphasized that Israel has prepared a plan - and began carrying it out a while ago - to destroy the blessed Al-Aqsa Mosque through the ongoing excavations underneath the mosque…[and] that the Al-Aqsa Mosque – above ground, under it, and around it - is a completely Islamic site to which the Jews have no right.⁹

Muslim worshippers during Ramadan, earlier this year. See Photo Credits.The provocative nature of these and many more such statements is recognised by Samir Awad, a political scientist at Bir Zeit University north of Ramallah:

Al-Aksa is a place heavily charged with emotions, people are willing to die for it and become martyrs going to heaven. A lot of Palestinians feel they are defending al-Aksa on behalf of all Muslims. Palestinians consider al-Aksa the gem of their future state. It signifies Palestine itself.¹⁰

Denying History

Denial of the existence of a Jewish Temple is an essential part of the ‘Palestinian narrative’. For example, Mahmoud Abbas said in 2000:

[The Jews] demand that we forget what happened 50 years ago to the refugees – and I speak as a living, breathing refugee – while at the same time they claim that 2000 years ago they had a temple. I challenge the assertion that this is so. But even if it is so, we do not accept it, because it is not logical for someone who wants a practical peace.¹¹

Denial of the existence of a Jewish Temple is an essential part of the ‘Palestinian narrative’.

So much for ‘logic’! Speaking to a journalist at Die Welt in 2001, Sheikh Ikrima Sabri (then Grand Mufti of Jerusalem), said,

There is not the smallest indication of the existence of a Jewish Temple on this place in the past. In the whole city, there is not even a single stone indicating Jewish history…¹²

To make such statements is not only a denial of Jewish history and archaeology, but of Islamic history! The Brief Guide to the Al-Haram Al-Sharif, published in 1924 by the Supreme Muslim Council of Jerusalem, freely states, “Its identity with the site of Solomon’s Temple is beyond dispute”, even quoting 2 Samuel 24:25. Much longer ago, Islamic historians and writers such as Abu Jafar Muhammad al-Tabari (9^th Century),¹³ Muhammad ibn Ahmad Shams al-Din al-Muqaddasi (10^th Century)¹⁴ and Nasir-I Khusraw (11^th Century)¹⁵ all acknowledged the same.

Western Perspective Change

In the West, there is still no official recognition of the ongoing anti-historical brainwashing and anti-Semitic incitement in the disputed territories, especially of young Palestinians, deceiving them into committing atrocities against ordinary Jewish people such as Ari Fuld.

Whether or not Jabarin was acting out of genuine concern for Al-Aqsa, as Palestinian media claim, the claim itself should not go unnoticed as yet another instance of incitement.

When 28-year-old American Taylor Force was stabbed to death in Tel Aviv in 2016, also as part of the Al-Aqsa Intifada, the issue of ‘martyrdom’ payments gained widespread media and political exposure in the US, with direct consequences for US-Palestinian diplomatic relations and for PA funding.

In this extraordinary window in international politics, is it too much to pray that blind eyes in Western politics and Church life would also be opened regarding the vicious incitement to violence coming from Palestinian leaders and media? At root it is all part of an intense spiritual battle against God, his covenant People and Land, but if ever there was a time when a change of perspective in the West was possible, it is now.

In the West Bank, the best hope for Palestinian youths is that Almighty God would grant them access to the truth before they reach for a knife. Surely our prayers for “the peace of Jerusalem” should be oriented in these ways.

Postscript: As the latest example of the perversion of truth in Palestinian youth, readers are advised to read about Ahed Tamimi's media tour and compare it with an interview broadcast on Russian TV, translated by Palestinian Media Watch here.

Also recommended:

• This 2-minute video from Boomerang on Palestinian indoctrination of children.
• Melanie Phillips’ recent article for the Jewish News Syndicate about the Western media’s excusal of Ari’s murder and general complicity in Palestinian violence.

References

1 Terrorist’s parents say they alerted PA, Israel before deadly stabbing of Fuld. Times of Israel, 16 September 2018.

2 PA hasn’t yet paid family of terrorist who killed Fuld, but they’ll be eligible. Times of Israel, 19 September 2018.

3 Translation by Palestinian Media Watch.

4 Eldar, S. Bibi blames everyone but himself for recent violence. Al-Monitor, 12 October 2015.

5 Gaza cleric calls on Palestinians to stab Jews, ‘cut them into body parts’. Times of Israel, 12 October 2015.

6 Social Media As A Platform For Palestinian Incitement – Part II: Video Tutorials, Tips For Achieving More 'Effective' Attacks. MEMRI Special Dispatch No.6186, 14 October 2015.

7 Marcus, I and Zilberdik, NJ. Official PA daily admits 161 Palestinians did carry out stabbing attacks during Palestinian terror wave 2015-2016. PMW Bulletin, 6 February 2018.

8 See note 3.

9 Ibid.

10 Lynfield, B. Is the ‘stabbing intifada’ back? Jerusalem Post, 23 July 2018.

11 In Kul Al-Arab on 2 August. Hollander, R. The Battle Over Jerusalem and the Temple Mount. CAMERA, 26 March 2010.

12 Ibid.

13 Friedmann, Y, 1992. The History of al-Tabari: Volume XII, The Battle of al-Qadisiyyah and the Conquest of Syria and Palestine. NY: State University of New York Press, p195.

14 Jerusalem mufti: Temple Mount never housed Jewish Temple. Times of Israel, 25 October 2015.

15 Nasir i-Khusrau, Diary of a Journey Through Syria and Palestine. Translated and prefaced by Guy Le Strange. London: Palestine Pilgrims' Text Society, 1893.

‘There is no occupation', Arab pastor tells shocked young tourists

An international group of millennials have seen the Israeli-Palestinian conflict in a new light after engaging with both sides – and being shocked by what they discovered.

A party of 11 young people from seven nations were brought together for the chance to understand issues from the point of view of those living there.

They were deliberately not primed to view things from any particular perspective in order to allow them to form their own conclusions through interviews and talks with representatives of both Israelis and Palestinians.

Their three-week trip was recorded on film for a feature-length documentary called Quest 4 Truth, now available on YouTube.

It was produced by Generation 2 Generation, a UK-based organisation founded by Andrew, Daniella and Daphne Kirk committed to inspiring the next generation with an uncompromising passion for Jesus and the Gospel.

Impact of Social Media

The group – from Germany, the USA, the UK, Norway, Japan, Brazil and South Africa – were introduced to community leaders in the Palestinian territories as well as in Israel itself.

Not surprisingly, most of them are strongly influenced by social media which generally portrays a narrative of Israel as big bullies of an oppressed people. Media bias had shaped their perception of the conflict, and they were profoundly shocked to discover that the truth was very different.

“I’ve been lied to,” said one. “You realise how false these stories are,” said another.

The Deputy Mayor of Bethlehem, Essam Juha, was forced to explain why a swastika was inscribed into the fabric of the hotel where they met him. He said it was because Israel had humiliated nations in the same way they had been treated.

“It was so hard for me to keep a straight face”, said Marlea, from New Orleans. “How dare they make that comparison [with the Holocaust]?”

Media bias had shaped the millennials’ perception of the conflict, and they were profoundly shocked to discover that the truth was very different.

After hearing how Palestinians see the Israelis as occupiers of their land, they were taken aback by the response of Arab pastor Naim Khoury, who asked: “What occupation?” And as he turned towards the windows, he added: “Where is the occupation? We are completely under the Palestinian Authority.”

The point was further brought home by a member of the group, who observed: “I have not seen one IDF [Israeli Defence Force] soldier, or Israeli flag.”

They also learnt that the throwing of rocks – and even Molotov cocktails – at Israeli soldiers is seen by Fatah, the PA’s ruling party, as non-violent activity.

Visiting ‘the Wall’

A further learning curve involved meeting Col Danny Tirza, architect of Israel’s notorious security barrier built to keep out terrorists, who said he wanted to be the first to begin taking it down when peace finally came. But in the meantime the murder rate from terrorism had been cut by 90%.

He said that those whose land had been split by the wall – only five per cent of which is concrete, the rest being a much more discreet wire fence – are offered compensation, but refuse to accept it for fear of being labelled collaborators.

Graffiti on the wall betrays the true ambition of Palestinian agitators, with a map showing all of geographical Israel as theirs. They have no wish to share the land, or establish a state beside Israel. They want all of it.

As historian Dr Michael Brown put it: “If the Palestinians put down their weapons there’d be no more war; if Israel put down their weapons, there’d be no more Israel.”

An ex-IDF soldier said: “They use our moral standards against us.” As an example, he explained how a terrorist suspect fled to a crowded residential area, knowing they wouldn’t open fire if civilians were at risk. And when the military had the place surrounded, the fugitive duly appeared on the roof in a bid to escape, at which point they shot him in the leg. But while supporting medics were bandaging him up, the soldiers were pelted with huge rocks. Israelis risk death because of the great value they place on life.

Israelis risk death because of the great value they place on life.

The youngsters hear from Israeli-supporting Stand with Us representative Shevy Kass on a visit to Sderot.Evidence of Apartheid?

Further observations on the Palestinians included – “They are victims of their own hatred” and “They are suffering a lot because of radical people in their community.”

In the southern city of Sderot, meanwhile, a rocket-proof playground has had to be built for children so that when sirens warn of regular incoming missiles from Hamas in nearby Gaza, the kids have an immediate bolt-hole.

The group also visited Jerusalem’s Yad Vashem Holocaust museum where a tearful young British woman, Megan, was visibly shocked by the way her country – in charge of the region then known as Palestine – closed the doors to Jews trying to escape Nazi-occupied Europe. And on the question of Israel practising apartheid – a charge widely disseminated by the liberal left – she added: “I haven’t seen any evidence of it.”

Dr Brown emphasised the need for Israel’s self-defence by saying that anti-Semitism levels are as high now as they were immediately before the Holocaust. A Brazilian member added: “I believe the biggest reason for anti-Semitism is lack of knowledge.” And a German youth said: “The greatest enemy of anti-Semitism is the truth.”

Watch the full documentary by clicking here (Christian version) or here (non-Christian version).